l\.o, CX^.ic<2- \^jaT \y\^ot^(Aor|, 

POSTER HANDBOOK 

A Plan for Displaying Official War Posters 


• How to obtain them from the Government 

• How to organize a poster committee 

• How to distribute them in your community 

• How to display them to advantage 










* SOVlt® 


1-/2- r/ f 3 1 / 


Prepared in Cooperation With the U. S. Office of Civilian Defense 



Local Defense Councils in many parts of the country have been 
calling on us for more war posters which can be displayed in their 
communities. These Councils have indicated to us that they are in¬ 
terested not simply in OCD posters but in any posters dealing with 
the war effort. 

The major difficulty has been to develop a regular working system 
to assure each community wishing to undertake this helpful war activ¬ 
ity of a regular flow of posters, at the same time not sending posters 
to Councils which did not wish to undertake this job or were not 
organized to do it. We do not wish to send posters to communities 
which do not want them, nor do we want to see posters stacked in 
Defense Council closets for lack of adequate machinery to post them. 

We have, therefore, worked out an arrangement with the Office of 
War Information—which controls the publication and distribution 
of all government war posters—wherein local option is the determin¬ 
ing factor. This pamphlet shows how any local Defense Council want¬ 
ing to engage regularly in the posting of war posters and willing to 
set up the machinery to do it can arrange to receive new posters once 
a month from the Office of War Information. It shows how to set up 
an organization for handling these posters and how to estimate the 
number that each Council wishes to receive. And, of course, there is 
provision for returning any poster which any Council feels is inappro¬ 
priate for its particular community. 

The U. S. Office of Civilian Defense commends this as a worthwhile 
project for local Defense Councils. 




Director , Office of Civilian Defense 



# 


For additional copies of this pamphlet write to Division of 
Public Inquiries, Office of War Information, Washington, D. C. 



R.V.S. 


3 7^4 

. S 

• Ui, 

POSTERS ARE AMMUNITION 

Posting of official Government posters is one of the most valuable 
contributions which citizens can make to the war effort. It can be 
done in spare time at no expense and the results are welcomed en¬ 
thusiastically in the community. A "wide display of posters is a direct 
reflection of the spirit of a community. They are great stimulators 
to other war activities, as well as a valuable means of keeping people 
accurately informed. 

Distribution —National and Local 

The Office of War Information, broadly speaking, has two ways to 
distribute posters. One is to send them out on a national scale to 
lists of organizations or trades such as post offices, restaurants, schools, 
retail store groups, railroad stations, etc. 

The other way is to send a supply to a local volunteer group in the 
community so that these volunteers can place the posters in the dozens 
of places that are sure to be missed in any national distribution scheme. 

Both ways are essential because neither one alone can do the ichole 
job. There are always big gaps in the first method and it never can 
take into account the community as a whole. On the other hand, if 
volunteers had to handle the whole job alone, it would be too much 
of a chore. 

The plan described in this folder is designed to help local Defense 
Councils do the local job. It does not expect them to put up all the 
posters in their communities, for the Office of War Information will 
continue to distribute posters through national channels as it is now 
doing and will continue to do so on an increasing scale. 

The Plan 

Until now, selections have been made and quantities estimated on 
each individual poster for local distribution. This procedure has 
proved too slow, for almost all posters nowadays are emergency mes¬ 
sages in which the time factor is of great importance. 

To be really effective, the posting of war posters must be organized 
on a regular schedule. The Office of War Information has now worked 
out a plan which makes it easy to start and to carry out such an 
* organized schedule. 

In general, the plan proposes that each community, through its De¬ 
fense Council, select a poster committee which shall receive regular 
quantities of official posters every month directly from the Office of 
War Information. These will be posters prepared by all the various 
war agencies—Treasury, War Production Board, Army and Navy, 
O. P. A., Manpower Commission, and so on. They will be selected by 
the Office of War Information to tie in closely with the most important 
Government campaigns which will be publicized through the press, 
radio, and movies at the time the posters reach your poster committee. 

1 


507834°—43 


Moreover, a special cardboard frame and easel backing will be fur¬ 
nished free of charge in moderate quantities by the Office of War 
Information in which the new posters can be mounted every month. 
Each shipment of posters should be posted immediately on receipt and 
replaced as soon as the next one arrives a month later. 

How to Carry Out the Plan 

Here are the steps to be followed in order to put this plan into effect 
through your local Defense Council: 

1. Form a Poster Committee. 

2. Select posting places. 

3. Work out regular posting routes. 

4. Create a distributing organization. 

5. Determine quantities and sizes desired. 

6. Appoint a central traffic manager to receive posters and apportion 
them to the individuals or team captains selected in step number 4. 

7. Fill out and send to Office of War Information the Poster Pledge 
on page 5 of this pamphlet. 


Instructions 


1. Forming the Committee 

The Chairman of the local Defense Council should select or approve 
the selection of a Poster Committee. It should be made up of people 
who can secure the cooperation of various sections or activities of the 
neighborhood: for instance, a public official for the public buildings 
and grounds, the stationmaster for the railroad and bus terminals, 
the principal of the school, the local newspaper editor, etc. The 
function of this committee is to do the original planning and to see that 
the continued operation moves smoothly. 

The Poster Committee should in turn appoint a Secretary. This 
person ought to be enthusiastic about the value of posters and ac¬ 
customed to organizing groups, especially of young people. The local 
Scout Executive, Y. M. C. A., or Boys’ Club leader, school athletic 
coach, leader of young people’s church activities, or any other person 
of this sort is suggested. The Secretary should have sufficient as¬ 
sistants, the number depending, of course, on the size of the community. 

The secretary of the local retail association or Chamber of Commerce 
should be consulted at the start. He represents the Retailers’ War 
Campaigns Committee, a volunteer distributing agency which has been 
organizing on a nation-wide scale to deliver posters to retail stores. 
Your activity, taking in the whole community, will be a broader one, 
of course, but the stores will be one of its most important aspects, so 
a careful coordination of plans is essential. 

If your community also wants to build and maintain official outdoor 
posting boards, an Outdoor Subcommittee should be formed. De¬ 
tails of this project are set forth completely in the pamphlet entitled 
Official Outdoor Posting Board which will be sent upon request. 


2 



2. Selecting the Posting Places 

The first job of the Secretary and his assistants is to make a com¬ 
plete tour of the community and list all the places where official war 
posters can be displayed to best effect. Each spot should be considered 
from several points of view. 

(a) How many people are likely to look at the poster in the posting place under 
consideration? Places where people collect are the best places: rail and bus sta¬ 
tions, busy street corners, recreation centers like bowling alleys, gymnasiums, 
auditoriums, and ballrooms. Places where people pause are better than places 
where they hurry by. 

(&) Is the place already being serviced with Government posters? Movie 
theatres are being efficiently served through the National War Activities Com¬ 
mittee of the Motion Picture Industry. Many retail stores, especially the larger 
ones, get them from the Retailers’ War Campaigns Committee, but there are still 
many stores not served and one of them may have the best show window in your 
community. Don’t bother about a place that is already displaying posters as long 
as it continues to do so effectively. 

(c) Is the place practical for posting? Will the surface be injured by tape or 
tacks or paste? Can a frame or posting board be erected to make posting easier? 
Is a ladder needed? Avoid difficult places unless they are especially desirable. 

( d ) Remember that the owner’s permission must be secured before placing 
posters! 

(e) If the owner will pledge a display place which you believe to be excep¬ 
tionally good and if you can be sure that posters will appear there regularly and 
on time, tell him you probably will be able to furnish him with an official Office 
of War Information cardboard display frame and easel. Do not promise frames 
because our supply is limited and you may not receive all you ask for. Addi¬ 
tional ones can always be bought at a nominal cost of from 25c to 50c depending on 
size. Make a careful note of the size so that you can order these frames with 
your first poster shipment, but do not order them unless you are convinced that 
they are really worth while. 

(f) Be sure to note the size of poster most suitable for each posting place. 
Posters come in these four sizes: 

40 x 56 inches 
28% x 40 inches 
22 x 28 inches 
14 x 22 inches 

(g) Does the place fit into an over-all pattern designed to cover the whole 
community in the best way? It is much better to select a reasonable number 
of places carefully planned to be seen by all sections of the community and to 
service them regularly and efficiently. Don’t be over-ambitious especially at 
first. Don’t overload your volunteer workers. A few well-placed posters, 
regularly changed, are much better than a big pile which gathers dust in the 
central receiving office. 

( h ) Are there special considerations which prevent regular posting of all 
types of messages? Churches, schools, residential windows or fences should be 
considered separately for posters suitable to their needs. 

3. Posting Routes 

When a complete list of the best posting places has been made, get 
a simple outline map of your community from the city or county engi¬ 
neer and mark the places on it. Then work out very carefully the 
ways that these places can best be serviced every month. In doing 
this the individuals or teams who will do the posting should be con¬ 
sidered so that the route will be most convenient and economical for 
everyone. If some place you have selected is out of the way, cross it 
off unless it is highly desirable. 


* 


« ♦ 
m * 




3 


4. Distributing Organization 

Each community will choose its own pattern for developing a 
distributing organization. Where it is customary for the Boy Scouts, 
the Y. M. C. A., the Boys’ Club, or some similar organization to 
distribute posters used in Community Chest, Red Cross, and other 
local campaigns, it may be decided to develop the distributing or¬ 
ganization of the Poster Subcommittee of the local Defense Council 
by using this existing resource. In any case, each volunteer should be 
responsible for putting up the posters he delivers. The job is not an 
easy one and long-term dependability is more important than flash 
enthusiasm. The success of the entire undertaking will depend most 
of all on the volunteers you select to carry it out. Here are a few 
suggestions: 

(a ) Try to assign regions to people who live or work in them. 

(&) Give your men places they are interested in and familiar with: business 
places to salesmen or tradesmen; public buildings to Scouts; bus stops to some 
one who rides the bus line, etc. 

(c) Enlist the services of men making regular deliveries of food, fuel, or 
supplies, night watchmen, inspectors, etc. 

id) Women and girls can help particularly in specialty shops, ladies’ rest 
rooms, tea shops, beauty parlors, etc. 

5. Quantities and Sizes 

Not until all of these first four steps are completed should the final 
quantities of posters be determined. Then, when a realistic and prac¬ 
tical program has been worked out and you are certain that the places 
you have finally selected can and will be serviced, you should decide 
the quantity you will require every month. Next fill out the Poster 
Pledge page 5 which should then be torn off and mailed to Wash¬ 
ington. 

Quantities must be specified for each of the four sizes (40" x 56", 
28 ^/ 2 " x 40", 22 x 28", and 14" x 22 "). Quantities and sizes must 
also be specified for easel frames. 

6 . Receiving Posters from Office of War Infoi'mation 

The Secretary of the Committee will receive the shipments of posters 
at a designated address from the Office of War Information warehouse 
at the first part of each month. It will be his responsibility to see that 
the members of the distributing organization receive tlieir allotted 
numbers of posters in the correct sizes. He should keep a careful 
record of all receipts and distribution. 

7. Poster Pledge 

As soon as your program is planned and your organization completed 
fill out the Poster Pledge. 

United States Citizens Service Corps 

Volunteers engaged in activities of poster committees are eligible 
for admission to the U. S. Citizens Service Corps and are entitled to 
wear its insignia, subject to the regulations of the Office of Civilian 
Defense and the policies of State and local Defense Councils. 


4 


£ 

3 

O 


o 


o 

be 

G 

• rH 

a 

o 

o 

05 
G 
C3 

CO 

G 

© 

-G 

co 

o 

Gh 

0) 
r H 
rH 

qG 


d 

WH 


K^S 

d 


_© 

~3 


£ 

C 

G 

05 

G 

a 

co 

G 

b£ 


G 

d 

© 

05 


o 

K*~J 

G 

d 

<5 


CO 

^ CO 
rip • i—i 

<0 G 

•<S> G 

^ o 

G* 

*©> G 

■> ct 

^ £ 
-G 

o 

G 


O 

Q 


C/5 

o 

Q. 


-G 

d 

-g 


' G t-G 

© g> 

oo ^ 

CO 

co O 

G fl 

2^ 

e +b CO p 

C ° n 

«P-§ 
d § 

« pH 

GO ©p-j 

oj cG d 

2 ^ g 
O © 

^ ® G 
G -p ® 

• PS 5 be 

rG2 ^ 

. ,_l 

G - ^ 

.1 $ 

1=5? 

d _ 

-+P 05 
co iS 
C --H 
© 


© 

> 

© 

G3 

r* 

G 

© 

O 


r* 

d 

> 

CO 

© 

c 

o 

rH 

© 

© 


HH 

d 

© 

£ 

d 

© 

G 

G 

© 

© 

G 

H© 

C 

O 

*<s< 

l ©i 
i t: 

G 

O 

• H 

-G 

(-! 

© 

• r-H 

r* 

r—H 

G 

• rH 

H 

G3 

be 

d 

CO 

rH 

.2 

-G 

rH 

rH 

rs 

© 

r^-H 

-G 

l r ^ 

i o 

i 5© 
i ^ 

© 

rH 

r o 

O 

co 

G 

O 

rH 

co 

Hi 

© 

• ^H 

G 

G> 

CO 

o 

-G 

2 s 

1 *©o 

1 5 

1 Q 

1 k *h 

G 

PH 

«+H 

© 

-G 

CO 

o 

G- 

• G 

-G 

G 

G 

rH 
r© ’ 
rH 
rH 
H 

?H 

o 

©J__ 

■4^> 

G- 

s 

1 

1 ^ 

1 

C 

G 

o 

• rH 


O) 
. G 

-G 

05 

CO 

G 


G 

o 


o ~ 
o © 

.22 


G • r—j i-G ^ 

cJG d a) 

£ ^ ^ 


•—"H 

C3 -i-J 


o 

G 


© 


• —* - i 

O -G 


C 

-(-3 


CO 
G 
£ 

d d 

rC rH 

+-> =3 


S'3 § 

JS_, ” p. 

© "o H 

d £ cj 

<—i G g 
. § CO ^ 

HH , • _ 

O 

© © , 

> .© 

d SG 

■c g 2 

© £ G 

> _ «J 


© © 

G & 

eg g 


G 

G 


o 

O , 

<© © 
CO 

G 

© 

«+-< G 
© © 

2 > 

°~£ 

co d 

© o 2 

h ^. 


d4 -©> 
co G 

G o, 

-G ©H 
CO CO 

•G © 

r - | • rH 

-G -G 

• rH 

-2 — 

i 

1 O c3 


©3 

d 


G o O ^ 


c o 

& © • 

rH H'i 

g © 

2- 
be 

d 


© . 
g be 

sc 

g>§.s s 


-g 

c 

© - 

8g 

PhPG 

© 

G © 


OpSEB 

t^O 

© Ti 


©.£2 

-G i> _ 
^ ^ © 
G d © 

*3 co O 
d © ° 

s & s 

t g c 3| 

- - HH jj 

- © o 

- c 5 ° ^ 

-G -4© Gh © 

hH g ^ O S-, 

Jp-s" M 

Ss«°« d 

b*- d ©G © G © 

2 -G © ^ 

- S 06 gS 

O OgaG o3 

« o° w © 

d 


S s 


G 

o o 


© 

G 

© 

53G 


r^G G5 

© CO 

G c5 

© G 

"G .5 

^ a 

S3 gn 

2 & 
g: 53 

^ G 

~ a; 

CJ c> 

_ 

© , 3 

d C>5^ 

G3 ©=> 


a>^s| 

•? a 

be 

G CO -G * G i-G 

2’S o o 

- ^ cn 5 G © S3 

GG5 

© d O c3 n 
S"S~ ffi-S ? ® 
“ £ 2 ® £ m 

^ © i-T © d 


G 2 

d r^S 

-G 

co 


4© 

G 

G ^ 

g-O d 

Q §~ ® ^ 


to 
P 

.2 


« | o l 3 

P G'-G ^.S 

© _ G 

2 C 


G 

a^^.co rpfi -g 
-h g o - G t>N G 

^ © © 2 -G G 

° f ^ r o S'P2 

e®5°| §c 

g E“ 

© o g G . 
c ©Z 3 ° ^ 

G d 


© 2^ 

■G 

G> ^ 

© 


G 

G 


© 

^5 

2Q 


© 

G 

be 


CJ 

8 

a 

^3 

C0 

8 

q 

8 

e 

•<Si 

q> 

B 

8 

C 

8 

<*G 

# cS> 

6 


© 

o 

G 

Gh 

C X 
< 


© 

G> 

d 


o 


d 


**» 


Change Regularly .—Fresh posters attract attention, but when people see the same old posters week after week they 
gradually grow impervious to posters in general. Post promptly so you won’t miss the tie-up with press, radio, and 
movies. 







© 

CO 

33 

© 

© 

© 


o 


o 

© 

~£ 


c3 

© 


+3 

c3 

S3 


cd 

tD 

© 

o 

© 

o 


© 

© 


- 4-3 

c3 


•+3 

O 

o 


CO 

z 

O 

h* 

Q£ 

H- 

CO 


© 

r^ 

a 

<D 

> 

c 


c 

c3 

> 

> < 

X 

c 

c 

© 


o 

o 

H 


c 

o 

• r-H 

c3 

g 

HH 

Ui 

O 


© 

© 

£ 

c 

C 

o 


U 

d 


Hs^ r-< 

§ s 


03 


© 

«o 

i 
o 

Si'S 
<© o 

s-o 

« h. 
s jg 

C/2 

Sk> Q 

- 00 Ph 


h-= 

03 

Sh 

73 

C 

o3 


73 

^03 

s 

03 

P 




03 


© 

© 

• pH 

co 

© 

"P 

C 33 

£ 

Pt 

O 

• pH 

P! 

£ 

co 

o 

£ 

c3 

© 


03 

CO 

c3 

03 


© 

03 

P 

£ 

P 

p 

03 

PJ 


*5 fl 
t-. o 

-k> 

.2 &D 

n (=t 


p p 


S 


P w 

O fc£ 

o 

H 5 Q 

fl ^ 

03 ^ 

rH 

rH 

.2 

‘-P 

C 3 

© 

O 2 

-4-3 .P 

sp £ 
o p 

z 

Q_ 

> 

© 

© 

© 

0 > © 

-l-H ^ 

Q_ 

73 

• rH 

P 

•p CO 

I 

O 

f-H 

cr 1 

© 

O - 
-*- 1 P 

cn 

Ph 

«*_ 

© 

O 

?>h 


O 

o 3 

?H 

-4-3 

N 


fl 

o 

• H 

GO 

•«H 

PJ 

CO 

*p *£ 

O 53 


© 

* 

9 g> 


Q 

Ph 

o 


o 

© 

>5 £ 


73 

o 

l£ 

£ 

^ o 


a 


* <S> 


g 

s 

to 

rH • 


CO 
CO S 

*H _ 4_3 

^ CO 

To o 
o 


pH 

CO ^ 

*o X 

X vc, 

o 00 

H <M 


co 

©1 
03 

-4© 

CO 

O 


Ph Pu 

00 <M 
(M <M 


XX £ 


c 

o 


"p 

"p 

c3 


CO 

03 

© 

► pH 
© 
Ph 


o 

o 

- 4-3 

o 


CM H 
(M r—I 

© © © © 
0.000 


cr 

o 

-4-3 

CO 


-H> 

P 

c3 

!> 


O 


O 

P 


03 


bC 

C 


o 3 

P 


03 

bC^- 

o 3 to 

g 


LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 

i 


0 007 873 188 6 


c 

£ 


o 

- 1-3 

03 

"P 

c3 

P 

*—i 

03 

P 


O 

- P 

CO 

CO 
-H3 

p 

03 

£ 

p- 

• pH 

P 

CO 


CO 

03 

>* 


c 3 

-a 


o 


© 

c3 

CO 
03 
S 3 

03 5 o 
-©> 

co © 

o P 

Ph O 


H o 

03 P 
P § 

ch ® 

P 03 


03 ,P 

X 'H 

© c 


C 

£ 


co 03 

3d 

f-i "H 
O 03 
^ ft, 

P^ 

© 5d 
.2 'C 

s ° 

"3 o 3 

03 

°3 bC 

O .S 

(M 


O 

X! 

c 3 

TJ 

T3 

<1 


CO 

w ® 

03 Ph 
pP 2 

o 2 
P ,a 
o 

co H 
10 M 
X \c^ 
o oo 


co co 
03 03 
PJ Ph 
03 03 

P P 

• • pH 

00 <M 

CM 

X X 

<M H 
CM i—i 


03 03 03 03 

S 3 S 3 S 3 S 3 

•pH #i-H «i“H 

CO CO CO co 

CO CO CO CO 

S-H f-H HH P 

03 03 03 03 >-0 

V -j -j +i C 3 

CO CO CO CO -t - 3 

O O O O O 

Ph Ph Ph P-( Eh 


< 


03 


co 
co 
03 
JH 

d H 0 


. 03 

-4-= C3 
-i -3 


^<3 0 35 


-t -3 

c3 

Ph 

- 4-3 

CO 

f-t 

<P 

03 

Pt 

- 4-3 

P 

o 


03 

Ph 

Ph 

• H 
rH 

*^0 

o 

HP 


CO 

03 


dpt 

2 

§ « 

P^ O 

^£ 
03 ^ 
CO 

£ o 

pP o3 

03 


^ ^ tJD 
P H p 
fcJD P 

-rH K. © 

CO ^ _0 
03 ^ 

"CP 

-d 

CO O 
Ph 03 


03 

S-H 
© 

5 P 

PC -H 3 


03 

Hh 

o 3 

PJ 

03 

C 3 *P 
Hh 'H 


Ph 

CO 

• t—H 

HP 

- 4-3 


o 

-H 3 


PP 


o- 

P G 

5 £ 

a 

§ ce 

"© © 
co 03 

P 

P O 
© 

3 P 

M CO 

o 5 © 
co ^ 

*<PP 

• l-H 


CO 

p 

fcJD 

rH 

oj 

Ph 

£ 

c3 

© 

Hh 

03 

k © 

£ 

si ** 
^Pt 
© 
P 

o ^ 
T 3 
fcJD <© 
P.N 

s 

^ s 

m rr 
Ph^ 

T 3 © 


© 


© 

© 

-M 

CO 

O 

Ph 


H -3 

© 


© 

> 

© 


o 

• rH 
- 4 J 




zi 

© 

© 

CO 

si 

"PJ 

© 


© 

© 

- 1-3 

© 

HP 

"TC 

r-H 

P 

o 

PJ 

CO 

"p 

p 

53 

© 

r—H 

P 2 

53 


© 

© 

53 

CO 

pH 

© 

- 1-3 

CO 

C 

pp 


S^H 

Go 


*<S> 


Make every one count to the fullest extent. 




















































































